VMware vs Parallels and MAC Address Instruction

How to make the right choice for you?

Understanding VMware Fusion

VMware Fusion harnesses visualization to give you a powerful tool to run PC applications and devices on your Mac. With VMware Fusion, you can run virtual machines inside your Mac, which gives you access to a wide range of Windows and other x86 operating systems and applications.

VMware Fusion Capabilities

With VMware Fusion, you can create, open, and run VMware virtual machines, and use PC-specific hardware with a Mac.

Parallels Desktop for Mac key types

A key which is used to activate Parallels Desktop can be referred to as an activation key, product key, license key or a license.

There are three types of keys available for Parallels Desktop.

trial

upgrade

full

Trial keys give an opportunity to use Parallels Desktop and decide if you like it before buying a license. Such keys are free of charge, only valid for 14 days and are not divided into upgrade and full.

From a technical point of view, Parallels Desktop installation activated with this kind of license is the same as the one activated with a key you purchase. It means that a trial copy lets you take advantage of all Parallels Desktop features. The only difference between a trial and a permanent copy is that a trial copy is time-limited.

In order to request a trial key for Parallels Desktop 8, you should first install the software, then open it and click on “Get Trial” in “Activate Parallels Desktop” window. Please see this article for detailed information on activation of Parallels Desktop 8 for Mac with a trial key.

Upgrade keys let you upgrade from one of two previous versions of the software. In order to activate Parallels Desktop with such a license, one must also have a key for one of two previous versions. For example, an upgrade to Parallels Desktop 8 is only possible if you have a key for Parallels Desktop 6 or 7.

If you have a license key for an older version of Parallels Desktop (2.x/3.0/4.0/5.0), you need a full key for Parallels Desktop 8.

Full licenses will activate Parallels Desktop without any additional keys. If you have never used Parallels Desktop before, then a full key is what you need.

Parallels Online Store offers both full and upgrade keys for Parallels Desktop: